He’s an exciting center prospect if he can consistently string together an outside shot, he should be in the top five mix. Still, he caused havoc on the defense, getting into passes and blocking three shots. His performance during the game was a bit more subtle, particularly on the offensive side. Many other players were biting off more than they could chew however, it was evident that Lively isn’t only a supreme mover, but he’s also exceptionally coordinated to boot. On top of that, he wasn’t missing any of his dunk attempts. Lively threw down windmills and between the legs dunks that would be impressive for anyone, but especially for a skyscraper of a man like himself. The pre-game routines were looser and more fun than you would see before a competitive game, and at one point, players started a dunk line.

The future Duke Blue Devil is billed at 7’2” with a 7’8” wingspan, but he was moving like a guard. The first player who jumped out at me during warm-ups was Dereck Lively II. Still, the in-person experience left me with strong impressions of multiple players, and I’m excited to share them with you. Now, to be clear, this was a single game, and it did get “All-Star Game-ish” at points, so parsing out takeaways can be difficult. I had the pleasure of partaking in my first “Boots on the Ground” experience for No Ceilings on Tuesday night, attending the McDonald’s All American Game in Chicago.

Mcdonald flash game